PSU Magazine Winter 2006

~daM~ Elvis Presley enters A matinee at Port- A furnished pent- IBM develops first New York Yankees The Winter Olympic music charts for the land's Laurelhurst house at the King computer disk drive win the World Series Games are held in first time with the hit Theater costs 70 Tower apartments in with platters two feet Terry Shrunk is Cortina d'Ampezzo, Heartbreak Hotel cents SW Portland starts at in diameter elected Portland's Italy; the Summer Marty wins Oscar for First transatlantic $135/mo. Portland's population mayor Olympic Games are Best Picture telephone cable goes is 400,000 in Melbourne into operation L--Setting p oos to poper~ n 1954, physics professor Will Norris traveled the nation visiting other urban universities. He was collecting information to draw up basic campus expansion plans for the soon-to-be-renamed Portland State Extension Center-a task given to him by President John Cramer. At the time, the school had only one classroom building, Old Main, today's Lincoln Hall. Norris sent back facts and figures to his lab assistant, junior Stuart Hood '56, who correlated the data by hand. Hood made charts and graphs that compared the number of teachers, students, and classrooms with facility types, square footage, and an array of other components. Norris used this information to gen– erate his concept for campus growth, and had Hood sketch the buildings in one-quarter-block increments to present to the architects. "l had to find solutions to things I'd never considered before, like how to get pianos onto the fourth floor of a music center," says Hood. "That working plan set in motion the basic concept of the campus, from Old Main up the Park Blocks to Shattuck Hall." Hood, a 1948 graduate of Portlands Benson Polytechnic High School, was now a veteran of the Korean War enrolled at Portland State on the Gl Bill. Because he'd been away for four years, Hood had to repeat several high school courses during his first year. Getting back into academics proved frustrating. Hood focused on his education and didn't participate in the school social scene until a blind date introduced him to his future wife. She was a student at Lewis &:. Clark College and together they attended functions and dances at both schools. "College was a wonderful experi– ence," says Hood. "l had a great time and met many people that I still correspond with today" With a degree in general science, Hood became a field engineer for SKF Industries, a bearings manufacturer. Attracted to the diversity of the indus– try, he worked with anti-friction bear– ings for different companies until 1994 and held a variety of positions, including part owner of a distributor– ship. At one point in college, Hood thought he might become a teacher and took several education courses. Years later, he drew upon this knowl– edge and conducted seminars on bear– ing installation and maintenance at several Western universities. "The education I received at Portland State College allowed me to become a teacher as well," says Hood. At 75, Hood lives in Bellevue, Washington, with his wife. They are chairpersons of the senior group at their church, organizing its social activities and trips. The couple shares a particular affinity for cruises. Recently, Hood and his wife took a cruise from San Diego to Hawaii and back to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary. Their travels have led them to various spots in Latin America and on a transatlantic cruise with ports of call in Portugal, Spain, and Italy. WlNTER 2006 PSU MAGAZINE 11